Happy Singles Awareness Day
February 14, 2005, 10:23 PM
Today was a day that I could have easily pulled my hair out. Today was Singles Awareness Day, more commonly known as “Valentine’s Day”. And I could have pulled my hair out not only because this is the holiday for lovers – and with me being totally single.
First of all, about being single – I don’t mind it. See, I saved money by not having to buy any of the Valentine’s crap we’ve been selling. The only thing I bought was a heart-shaped box of chocolates for the box design. For ME. I thought it was cute because it says “Choo Choo Choose Me” and there’s a picture of a train. I bought it because it reminds me of the classic Simpsons episode where Lisa Simpson gives Ralph Wiggum a Valentine that says, “I choo choo choose you”.
Now, about today. I was ready to pull my hair out because it seemed that everyone and their mother was buying flowers and cards for their significant others. And flowers don’t like to scan. Seriously, they don’t. I was surprised when I could get a flower to scan. This is when we wish flowers were sold a different way, like by weight or something like produce. Just toss ’em on the scale and put in a number and voila – flowers.
Continue reading…“Do you see what I see?”
“I don’t know what you see, but what I see is me!”
“I see me, too!”
February 14, 2005, 1:35 AM
This snippet from the Olsen twins’ movie It Takes Two basically describes my reaction to finding a picture of me from J20 on not one, but two Web sites.
About finding pictures of me, it’s interesting the way I see it. First of all, simply having a picture of me on the Web is no longer a big deal for me. I have a bazillion pictures of myself on the Web already – most of them on here, and taken with the intention of using them here. Finding pictures of me on other people’s Web sites that originated from my site is interesting, but still not as interesting, since it’s nothing new photographically. I’ve already seen all the photos from my site, thank you very much.
However, the occasional spoof is amusing, such as that which was done on Spinnwebe, which used an exaggerated version of my style to create a photo set about a trip to Starbucks. There, they used original photos. On that topic, though, I still find it amusing to read this line: “About the most interesting part was what wasn’t there, which is who the hell am I and how the hell did I get his phone number.” Reason that wasn’t in there was twofold. First of all, I already knew who Spinn was and knew about that which was Spinnwebe for some time, having first discovered his site via Dysfunctional Family Circus (the DFC). I thought it was funny as hell, too. Twas a shame to see the DFC go away, though I understand why it did. And as for how did he get my number? This was in my Potomac Hall room at the time. At that point in the year, there was only one place to find my number: JMU’s Web site. Kind of narrows things down, doesn’t it?
Categories: Activism, Photography, Schumin Web meta
So very amusing…
February 11, 2005, 2:42 AM
It’s interesting what my friend Katie and I ended up doing after work this evening. We ended up going to her house, and worked on getting the treadmill that she recently bought working correctly. It’s one of those push-it-yourself models, and the belt wasn’t moving very well. It seems that the belt was not properly lubricated, after I took a test walk on it. It took me considerable effort to get it moving, and then once it started, it practically flung me right off.
So I got on the floor with this silicone oil that came with the treadmill and went to work. I put “a few drops” on the surface beneath the belt as the directions specified. Still no luck, after a test run.
So I tried a plan B, which was to put some more drops of oil on there. In squeezing the bottle, the dropper thing came off the end. I guess you weren’t supposed to squeeze like that. No problem, though. I got some oil where it was supposed to go, and we gave it another test run. No go. Still wasn’t running smoothly.
Meanwhile, Katie’s laughing her head off, watching me practically fly off the back of the treadmill whenever it unexpectedly started.
Categories: Katie
Old friends, new friends – that best describes my most recent DC trip…
February 11, 2005, 2:23 AM
I went to Washington DC on the first-regular-trip-after-a-big-demonstration trip on Wednesday. And yes, this being the first trip after a big demonstration is significant. I’ve always found that those trips, which I’ve experienced three times in the past, always feel a bit odd. On those trips, the most recent DC memory is of a big demonstration, and not whatever regular antics I get into. Who knows. Hard to describe, but it always feels a little strange.
Anyhow, the trip could be best described as a day of meeting old and new friends. But before meeting anyone, I first took some close-up photos of 1117 19th Street in Rosslyn, which is currently undergoing demolition. Recall, from my J20 Life and Times set:
I found out now why I have so much junk…
February 7, 2005, 6:48 PM
I’ve been cleaning out the tubs in the floor today, and my father came by. Now we know why I’m such a pack rat. I inherited that trait from him.
Here’s how it came about. He says, looking in one of the tubs, “The garbage can is your friend.” Then he goes into Sis’s room, which I’m using as a staging area for junk. He looks at the stuff. “You’re getting rid of this?”
I eventually put it to him nicely, this way: “Now I know why I have so much junk. Now shoo before you get me to keep something else I don’t need.”
The garbage can is our friend. And I haven’t even gone near the closet yet.
And on an unrelated note, I visit DC once again on the 9th. This marks nearly three weeks since J20, the last time I went to Washington DC. My friend Katie and I had to cancel our February 2 trip because of an emergency that came up, and so we didn’t get to go. Katie and I will reschedule. I’m going on Wednesday. I know I’m going to go to Union Station again, if nothing but to reminisce, since besides being a fun place to go for the railfan, the shopper, and the architectural buff, which I first photographed two years ago in my appropriately-named Union Station photo set, I’ve now been to a demonstration there! The Freedom Ball was held at Union Station, and I was outside with Code Pink demonstrating. So Wednesday ought to be a fun DC trip. We’ll see what I do this time.
Categories: House
Ever burned the roof of your mouth before?
February 7, 2005, 12:42 AM
Ever done that, where you burn the roof of your mouth eating food that’s a little too hot? I did that last night. We had pizza, and it was just a little too piping hot to eat, but I ate anyway. The first bite was just like, “WOW!” on the heat index.
So it was pretty evident that I’d burned my mouth on that hot pizza. And as expected, it was numb afterwards, as the heat from the pizza probably burned off all the nerve endings over there.
The next day is when the fun begins, though. By the day after, all the nerve endings and such related to sensation have healed, and so now you can feel the burned area again. And it’s still sensitive from the burn. And it’s not even a “pain” kind of feeling. It’s more of a tingly feeling, if you know what I mean. It’s weird.
I highly do not recommend trying to find out for yourself. Trust me on this one. Plus, in the course of life, you, too, will eat something that’s too hot and burn your mouth.
And also, this is a distinctly different feeling from when I’ve burned my tongue in the past, usually on hot soup or hot coffee. Burning the roof of your mouth is a different, more intense feeling. But it’s still quite similar as well. And still a weird feeling nonetheless.
Categories: Food and drink, Myself
TWO monitors!
February 5, 2005, 10:08 PM
Look at this!
Yes, I have TWO monitors now! One and two. The big one is my original 19″ monitor that came with my computer back in 1998. The second one is a HP monitor that I inherited from my father when he recently got a new computer. I actually got the whole computer from him, and I scavenged it for parts. So I took the video card out of it and also hooked up the monitor.
Categories: Computer
Be careful what you wish for, because in this case… I got it!
February 3, 2005, 9:46 AM
Yesterday, in this space, I said, “Still, I’d like to really see a snowfall that will cause several inches to cover my car, requiring me to really use the brush on the end of my scraper. Or perhaps give it one good blast with my windshield wiper.”
Today, this is what I got:
Categories: Winter weather
AP: “Punxsutawney Phil has spoken, and the news isn’t good.”
February 2, 2005, 10:40 AM
Well, it seems that Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow. And that means six more weeks of winter.
To that I say, six more weeks of winter? We haven’t even had six weeks of winter to begin with! Forget six more weeks. You see, January was unseasonably warm here, and so for a period of several weeks, we were having sixty-degree weather. And it was January. Now it’s finally gotten a bit more like winter, with our getting snow two weekends in a row.
Still, I’d like to really see a snowfall that will cause several inches to cover my car, requiring me to really use the brush on the end of my scraper. Or perhaps give it one good blast with my windshield wiper.
So we’ll see what the rest of winter brings. The groundhog saw his shadow. Good. Maybe we’ll get that snowfall I’ve been hoping for.
Categories: Holidays
“You mean they want to wear your clothes?”
January 29, 2005, 9:51 PM
First of all, ladies and gentlemen, WE HAVE CABLE! WE HAVE CABLE! All interested parties are now officially connected to what I have dubbed the “Schumin Wireless Network”. That means we have my computer, Dad’s computer, Mom’s laptop, and Dad’s laptop all in place on our little network. Now I don’t have to leave my room for anything. I can just IM the rest of the family.
Otherwise, today was interesting at work. They were calling for winter weather for our area, which came in the form of sleet, sleet, and more sleet. But before the sleet showed up, it was like Christmas in January in our Waynesboro Wal-Mart. Seriously. Like Christmas, with all the registers open and all the lines backed up to the clothes. Everyone was buying the usual winter weather staples – bread, milk, and eggs. One can assume that everyone makes french toast when it snows.
I also ran into a friend at work who had two women at his side – one on each arm. His comment was, “They want to get into my pants.”
We hit a milestone!
January 29, 2005, 9:34 AM
Yes, we did hit a milestone. One computer is successfully connected wirelessly for the high-speed Internet. And it’s Dad’s laptop. But it works.
For those of you who are wondering what changed without a service call, we moved the modem and router from my room to the family room. And then we tried it all using a laptop. And it works.
So now we need to figure out what’s wrong with mine. The problem I had before was that it wasn’t seeing the wireless card I put in there. So we’ll see. I’m going to fiddle around with my computer a bit after work, and see what I can come up with. Somehow, I’m going to get up and running. Then the rest shall be easy.
Richard White answered my question!
January 28, 2005, 11:07 PM
First of all, in case you’re wondering, who is Richard White, let me explain. Richard White is the General Manager of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, otherwise known as Metro.
My question was as follows:
Mr. White:
As a recent college graduate with a degree in Public Administration, and also as a transit enthusiast, I am considering a career with Metro. Are there any pointers you might give on how to best “get a foot in the door” with Metro?
And his answer was helpful in providing direction to me. I’ve linked to his response below. It feels so good to have my question answered on the WMATA forum.
And my next trip to Washington is February 2 with my friend Katie.
Categories: WMATA
I’m getting there…
January 28, 2005, 8:23 AM
Aside from fiddling with the new Internet connection and clearing space in my room with the intention of organizing, sorting, and deciding the fate of junk, I’ve also made considerable headway on my J20 photo set in Life and Times.
The photo set will be modeled on the Million Worker March prototype – broken into parts, with a modified narrative from the Journal. And unless something changes between now and the release, the set will have 109 photos, and seven movies (as a point of comparison, the Million Worker March had 75 photos and 14 movies). Right now, the only things that I can tell you are totally complete are the movies. Those are converted, freeze-framed, and uploaded. Done. I thought about offering one up as a preview, but upon looking at them, realized that they don’t stand up too well on their own, and that they need a photo set to support them.
I’m also going to do a “Literature” section again, containing PDF files of some of the pamphlets and such I’d gotten along the way. That, however, is the furthest from completion – I haven’t even scanned anything yet.
Categories: Activism, DC trips, Schumin Web meta
This is odd…
January 27, 2005, 11:30 AM
When I woke up this morning around 8:30, the cable Internet was working correctly. Go figure. So I started surfing around with my newfound power. Went to Oren’s Transit Page to look at his site again now that I have a high-speed connection. His site is rather cumbersome to view using the 56K connection due to the way the graphics are set to load.
However, the connection was somewhat spotty. On again, and then off again. On again, and off again. Then it went off for a long time, cutting off my view of Metro’s old Gillig Phantoms. This also dropped all my IM services. Then it came back on. Reconnect to IM. Once I got all reconnected, it dropped, which disconnected all my IM again. And we repeat.
So we can at least get data to come into the system. That’s a good sign. I called Adelphia to find out what was wrong, and it turns out they have about three modems in our area experiencing difficulty connecting… and ours is one of them. So they kept our appointment for a house call for Sunday. And I’m still writing this on dial-up.
Categories: Internet
No high-speed Internet yet…
January 26, 2005, 8:43 PM
Nope. No high-speed Internet. More 56K. Oh, boy.
Well, not yet. We have to get the cable guy over to make a house call to get it started because they say that something is wrong hardware-wise somewhere along the line. So they’re coming on Sunday to fix it and hopefully get it going.
Still, I did buy $300 worth of stuff at Wal-Mart to hook everyone up with it. About half of that equipment is opened and scattered around my room. Some of it’s hooked up. Some of it is halfway hooked up. I had to stop when we found out that a house call was needed.
All I have to say is that I’m pleased and upset all at the same time. I’m pleased because I know that it’s not a mistake on my part, and that I most likely did it correctly. But then I’m upset because I have to wait for my high-speed Internet, which I’d be hoping to write this Journal entry on this evening.
Somehow, we’ll get it all straight in the end, I’m sure.
Categories: Internet, Power Rangers